THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, March 12, 1995 TAG: 9503090199
SECTION: CAROLINA COAST PAGE: 05 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ANNE SAITA, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: ELIZABETH CITY LENGTH: Medium: 92 lines
IF THREE local women have things their way, disadvantaged children will play out their frustrations on the stage. Or maybe work things out in a sewing class or swimming pool.
For some kids, it may even turn out to be a walk in the park.
Pat Shepherd, Annie Greene and Kathy Olson want to raise hope and self-esteem for some of Pasquotank County's poorest people through programs targeting at-risk youth.
Their outlet: the county's 4-H Program, which traditionally has reached out to horse lovers rather than those more into horseplay.
``I think all of us see kids who do not have hope. I see them standing in the middle of the river, and they don't realize they can swim to the other side,'' said Olson, a social worker coordinating a $19,000 federal grant to serve homeless and at-risk children.
``We don't really have a high number that we know to be homeless, but we have a lot of high-risk because of the high poverty level,'' Olson said.
In 1993, 26 percent of children in Pasquotank County lived in poverty, ranking it among the poorest 20 counties in North Carolina, according to the North Carolina Child Advocacy Institute in Raleigh.
Most of the communities surrounding Pasquotank, except Dare County, have similar profiles, Olson said.
Annie Greene has two grown children and is raising six more while working as a school bus driver. Her husband is a school custodian. Greene says she knows that education and attitude can overcome economic difficulties. That's one reason she serves on the Pasquotank 4-H program's at-risk youth committee.
Her enthusiasm and boundless support recently earned her a trip to Raleigh to receive a Volunteer of the Year Award from Gov. James B. Hunt Jr. Greene's background and commitment to children are reasons young people look up to her.
``There are role models in places we don't look. We look in schools, churches and at superstars,'' she said. ``They don't look at just ol' Joe that digs ditches to be a role model.''
Greene and the others have a lot of ideas to improve students' school performances and, in turn, create strong community leaders.
One of the most ``dramatic'' visions is of a theater group where young actors portray a family in crisis. If all went well, the thespians would tour the northeast region.
Greene is also being trained to help facilitate a nationwide program called ``Talking with T.J.,'' currently being used at Elizabeth City's Sheep-Harney Elementary School.
Sponsored by the Hallmark Corp. and several nonprofit organizations, the activity-oriented ``Talking with T.J.'' teaches children to work cooperatively to solve problems.
It is geared toward second- through fourth-graders but is also being introduced at the city's Hugh Cale Center and the new alternative school called Crossroads.
School can be extra challenging for children in dysfunctional homes. Parents, preoccupied with daily struggles, often offer little encouragement.
``A lot of these people had those kids when they were kids, and they just never had any parenting skills,'' said Shepherd, who has been a Pasquotank County 4-H agent for 19 1/2 years.
That's one reason parenting classes also are being made a priority.
``Parents sometimes just don't know how it can be different, or know how to change,'' said Olson, a mother of two young children.
Greene and Shepherd recently spent an entire day applying for grants to fund a slew of programs. For example, one is to purchase sewing machines and materials for classes at Herrington Village and the Hugh Cale Center.
More effort is being made to establish community 4-H clubs in low-income neighborhoods ``because 4-H can give those children the things they aren't getting at home,'' Shepherd said.
Those ``things'' could include goal-setting, scholarship and self-esteem. They also include exposure to animals.
``A lot of children living in public housing can't have any pets,'' Greene said. Added Shepherd, ``These children really relate to animals.''
Yet another big push is physical fitness. That's why a Challenge Day Camp is scheduled this summer for rising sixth-graders to improve fitness levels through walking, rope climbing and swimming, among other things.
Reaching youth with poor social skills, negative attitudes and low academic performances is what these and other programs are all about, the women said.
``We aren't expecting miracles,'' Shepherd added. ``We just want them to try harder.'' ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by DREW C. WILSON
Kathy Olson, Pat Shepherd and Annie Greene want to use Pasquotank
County's 4-H Program to raise hope and self-esteem for at-risk
youth.
by CNB